A cocktail lover's guide to the semi-sybaritic life.Cocktail and Food Consultants Steve Schul and Paul Zablocki's journeysin mixology with old and new drinks, food to pair with them, places to imbibe, and the buzzingsgoing on
in their thirsty minds.

Recipes galore with ideas for Cocktail–Party Food Pairings.

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Let me start by saying that, although I very much wanted to, I did not even come close to finishing the nine cocktails served to me at the recent Bols Genever Classic Cocktail Series: The Influence of Bitters. Even though bringing each coupe to my lips was like tasting history, I only took two sips of each drink (three if I really liked it), and gently pushed them away from me as I listened to the estimable Stephan Berg, who cohelms The Bitter Truth company in Germany. He began his presentation, behind the bar at Brooklyn’s newish classic cocktail hot spot Clover Club, by saying, “I’ll tell you anything you’d like to know . . . except the recipe for The Bitter Truth.” For those of you not familiar with The Bitter Truth, Stephan Berg and business partner Alexander Hauck travel around the globe promoting their excellent line of cocktail bitters (Steve and I have two in our collection: Orange and Celery). They are amazingly balanced, well-crafted bitters, and have spiced up cocktails throughout the free, drinking world for several years now. Germany, which once only had Angostura bitters available, now has a host of flavoring agents to be proud of. While at the event, I was lucky enough to try the hard-to-find, small-batch Jerry Thomas’s “Own Decanter Bitters,” A piquant blend of citrus fruits and clove, derived from a recipe from the 19th century’s master bartender, Jerry Thomas. A truly masterly concoction. (I even got to try a Holland’s Pride Cocktail, made with the extinct Boker’s bitters—a rare treat, indeed!)

We began sipping bartender extraordinaire Brian Miller’s take on one of the first published cocktails, the Brandy Cocktail, a simple and flavorful classic, and then moved into cocktails highlighting Genever, an old-school maltwine-based gin that Bols has reintroduced to the world in the form of a smoky-gray bottle containing this unique spirit (the smell reminds one of yeasty, fresh-baked bread). Bols rep Tal Nadari had explained to us in his opening remarks the history of Bols Genever and its reemergence into the world of cocktailiana, and now we were about to taste Genever in action with our second sipper, the Gin Cocktail . The Genever truly is a revelation, closer in flavor profile to a dry whiskey than a London dry gin. Just adding a dash of bitters, some curaçao, and some simple syrup to create the Gin Cocktail was only the racehorse out of the starting gate. I couldn’t wait to see what drinks would come out next, and which ones would be my favorites.

Method
Stir in ice for 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a lemon twist.

Those that did stand out were the early Martinez Cocktail (a Manhattan essentially, but with Genever substituting for whiskey), the early Martini Cocktail (not to be confused with a current-day bone-dry Martini—this one contains Old Tom gin, a sweeter and mellower cousin of Genever, and a dash of absinthe), and the Bamboo Cocktail (a mix of dry vermouth, sherry, orange and aromatic bitters, garnished with an olive).

Method
Stir in ice for 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a lemon twist.

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During the seminar, we listened to Stephan expound the different eras of the cocktail, backed up by a photo presentation (my favorite: an old snap of bitterly stern Temperance Movement ladies underneath the banner “Lips That Touch Liquor Shall Not Touch Ours”—the poor dears looked as though they had never been touched by anyone, or anything, except perhaps the catarrh). It was comforting to see some familiar faces at this event, such as those attached to the able bodies of Erik Ellestad (Underhill-Lounge), Joaquin Simo (Death & Co., and one of Playboy Magazine’s top 10 bartenders of the year), Jonathan Pogash (The Cocktail Guru), Zachary Sharaga (Louis 649), Michael Anstendig (food and lifestyle writer), Francine Cohen (Food & Beverage Magazine), and Dave Wondrich (Imbibe!, the book).

And it was equally delightful to meet some new comrades, especially the two amicable gentlemen sitting next to me: Giuseppe Gonzalez (the head bartender at Clover Club), and Chris Stanley (Foodbuzz Featured Publisher, An Exercise in Hospitality); also Greg Boehm (mastermind behind the re-release of classic cocktail books from MudPuddle Books), and the charming Julie Reiner, the lady with her finger on the pulse of the Cocktail Renaissance and owner of Clover Club. Without her help (and gorgeous bar), and the talents of Stephan, Tal, and Brian, I would not have been able to spend a sybaritic afternoon in my favorite place on Earth—Brooklyn—with some of the nicest folk around. Here’s to Bols Genever, The Bitter Truth, and Clover Club. Cheers and Bottoms Up.

P.S. My slight hangover the next morning was only cured later in the evening by a cocktail at the new Prospect Heights bar, Cornelius. Good luck and welcome to the ’hood.
* Because the Jerry Thomas bitters is difficult to come by, you can substitute it for another bitters, such as Regan's Orange Bitter No. 6, or perhaps a combination of Angostura and The Bitter Truth Orange Bitters (you want both citrus and spice flavors). —Cocktail Buzz

Monday, February 16, 2009

A new highball finds its way into the hearts of two guys from Brooklyn.

Matthew Rowley of Rowley’s Whiskey Forge has lost his job. As a man of the spirituous world, he will need some helpful hints to get him through his hard times. Cocktail Buzz offers four easy ways to help stretch your wallet while we try to rid ourselves of eight years of misguided legislative decisions. Follow these simple Steps and you will find peace, enlightenment, and super savings as we battle the pernicious spread of recession.

Step #1: Drink (and eat) at home. The price of a fancy cocktail at boutique bars is, well, exhorbitant during these trying days. You may find that staying at home to drink will save you big time. Don’t stop going to your favorite watering hole altogether (you’ve built cherished relations with the men and women behind the bar and they will surely miss your meticulously researched inquiries into their craft). Drinking at home all the time will definitely raise eyebrows, though. You will want to keep your communication skills active, so head to the bar on payday. And regarding dinner, we put eat in parentheses above since many times you would forgo dinner if too much effort was involved in eating at home; after all, if you’re used to making three separate Manhattans using the new fancy whiskeys you picked up during your trip to Louisville, you won’t be doing much of that anymore, so dinner at home is not only viable, but practical. (And put down that phone—we are not talking about delivery.)

Step #2: Split your drink. And if you don’t have anyone to split your drink with (since you’re drinking more at home now), make half-cocktails. This will help improve your math skills when you are trying to figure out how much half a dash is. If you’ve lost your job, add math skills to your resume. We know you want to drink more to cushion the blows that your 401(k) keeps inflicting on your future, but you must replace foolish notions with mature practice. Drinking less will lower your tolerance; therefore, less is needed to get you to the point of feeling that click of peacefulness, as Brick so eloquently puts it in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

Step #3: Use Paper Towels. Use a paper towel to soak up any spills, then squeeze the spirits back into the bottle or glass that has lost its precious cargo. (Make sure you buy them in bulk at Costco or Sam’s Club for more savings.) For extra credit, rinse your paper towel and hang it over a makeshift clothesline in your bathroom that you’ve McGyvered using a piece of string and two screw hooks. If guests ask, “What gives?” tell them you are creating a backdrop for your next cocktail photo shoot. Their initial horror will turn to admiration.

Step #4: Make Highballs. Highballs are a perfect way to stretch that bottle of booze. Just add an ounce ora n ounce and a half of your favorite (or available) spirit, fill that glass with some seltzer (very cheap if you buy the no-brand brand), and forget the garnish. If you need extra flavor, try some of those old spices that have been hanging out in your cupboard. You know, the ones that you’ve been using a little more of now that you are cooking at home. This is also a good opportunity to use some of those dusty-bottled liqueurs that have lain hiding in the back of the sideboard. Mix two together, add soda, and voilà, you have yourself a new cocktail. Give it a fun name and serve it to guests who are awed by your knowledge of spirituous arcana.

We hope that our tips have been helpful. And if you’r eever in Brooklyn, and want to get together for a drink please bring over a bottle. We’ll be happy to add some soda and forgo the twist.

Sunday, February 1, 2009

If ever there was a liqueur that captured the palates of mixologists and imbibers alike, it is Domaine de Canton ginger liqueur, a bewitching mix of Vietnamese baby ginger and cognac. The other night we were faced with five cocktails celebrating the virtues of this versatile elixir. Not only that, we got to experience a bar that was new to us. Did we drink all five? Yes (but they were not full cocktails—give us some credit). Did we like them all? Yes. And we were even blessed with a bonus cocktail from one of our esteemed bartenders of the evening, our friend from the City by the Bay, Danny Ronen (pronounced Donny), who we’ve recently dubbed our “San Francisco Treat.” Why? Because he is a wit, and after a few cocktails, wit wins the day.

Danny invited us to the event, which was held at Louis 649, located just East of Tompkins Square Park in the mysterious nether regions of Alphabet City. Danny is the newly appointed West Coast Ambassador to Domaine de Canton, and he was eager for us to sip some ginger-spiced drinks, created by some crafty mixology–bartender types. Louis 649 proved to be the perfect location for such an event (they have these events on Tuesdays for you to become familiar with a certain liqueur or spirit, a varietal of wine, or craft beer). Although it’s located far far east of the subway, we hopped on the bus bound for the East River to avoid the bitter cold. As soon as we arrived, there was Danny, at the bar, waving for us to come in to warm up. He proffered his fist in Barack and Michelle fashion, and Paul announced to the bar, “Oh, we’re fisting now?!” A round of laughs, followed by a round of our first drink, the Ginger Rye Toddy, created by the young hipster Chris Raab of Le Poisson Rouge in NYC (he’s there on Mondays). Perfect to defrost our frozen fingers and get the blood flowing.

Add to a heat-proof glass. Top with hot water. Garnish with a lemon wheel.

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Our tour guide for the evening, the delightful Gianfranco Verga, explained to us how Louis 649’s Tuesday Night Tastings Series works. (It’s well worth the $25 you need to shell out—you will be taken care of by the knowledgeable bartenders with plenty to imbibe, and Louis 649’s ambience is comfortable, well-lit, unpretentious, and chill.) Thanks to Verga and his association with its affable owner, the welcoming Zachary Sharaga, the two expanded the character of Sharaga’s bar in the past six months by crafting these tasting events, and they have drawn new people to the space to make it a destination for cocktail lovers. Louis 649 boasts both classics and contemporary drinks (a little something for everyone), and, most important, an amazing ice machine that will keep your cocktails nice-cold, but not watered down. They have a wide collection of spirits, liqueurs, and other quaffs to imbibe, many of those which grace our liquor cabinet at home. We think we’re going to like it here!

We then were tempted with the Domaine de Canton Cocktail, a drink that truly highlights the flavors of this spicy yet smooth liqueur.

We then met the East Coast Rep for Domaine de Canton, Jennifer (JC) Craig, who warmed us up with fun facts and delightful tales surrounding the almost devotional ways people use the ginger liqueur. After chatting and sipping for a while, she gave us a delightful book on the history of Domaine de Canton, with oodles of cocktail and food recipes—the Spicy Hamachi Ceviche is already at the top of our list.

Slice the hamachi as thinly as possible and reserve slices in refrigerator. In a mixing bowl, stir together the Domaine de Canton, coconut milk, lime juice, ginger and chili paste. Season the sliced hamachi with salt and pepper and add to the mixing bowl. Gently toss to coat evenly. To serve, divide the ceviche evenly between six small bowls, garnish with basil and toasted coconut flakes.

Serves 6.

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John Cooper, the developer of Domaine de Canton, arrived and JC introduced him to a crowd that already had three drinks down the hatch. (Chris Raab made us his Canton Kiss [see recipe at end of post], and yes, the cocktail is accompanied by a real kiss, but you have to ask.) John self-effacingly stated, “I can’t mix a cocktail to save my life,” but he clearly knows what he likes. When creating the ginger liqueur, he strove for “something that spoke ginger, but with a neutral pallet.” He “wanted to provide bartenders and mixologists with the right product” that would be easy to mix and draw out the flavors of a cocktail’s components, but allow the Domaine de Canton to shine. And if you’ve experimented with the liqueur, you’ll know how easy it is to work with. Its inherent spiciness is easily tamed by fresh juices, and, of course, ice. Domaine de Canton was used in our “Create Your Signature Cocktail” class, mixed with bourbon and orange bitters, by a couple who had visited India and wanted to create a drink that would remind them if its flavors. We’ve used it ourselves in a riff on the classic, and sadly neglected, Stinger:

Stir all but garnish in a mixing glass filled halfway with ice for 30 seconds. Strain into ice-filled rocks glass. Add garnish.

The Rum Ginger Stinger starts out with a strong twang of menthol–mint, but as the drink progresses, and the ice slowly dissolves, the ginger quietly takes control, and the finish is a feast for the taste buds.

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After the speech, we spoke with John Cooper, and while we were making small cocktail talk, Danny slipped us another drink using Domaine de Canton that wasn’t on the bar list. It was developed by his friend and fellow San Franciscan, Jackie Patterson:

Stir for 30 seconds in an ice-filled mixing glass. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

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Tequila and ginger make for a dynamic duo [see also Canton Kiss recipe below], spiky upon first sip, smooth in the finish as the flavors meld and mellow. But we had to pace ourselves in this Dionysian orgy, for we had two cocktails to go, and we were already feeling the effects of long work days and little food. At the end of our evening, we were offered another drink by the reps from Domaine de Canton, but, unfortunately, had to refuse. It was almost 10 o’clock, and dinner was awaiting us at home in the form of reheated Chicken Parmesan. We waved good-bye, hopped in a cab, and blathered endlessly about what a good time we had. We’re looking forward to another Tuesday Night Tastings at Louis 649, and a stab at our new Domaine de Canton recipes. Try them and let us know what you think.